HONOLULU – The University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team picked up its first win of the New Year with a 90-39 defeat of Chaminade on Thursday afternoon to leave Hawaii unbeaten and with a pair of victories.
Fourteen Quakers scored at least a point in Penn's 10th win of the season, tied for the third-most non-league wins in a season in program history. Kayla Padilla led the way again with 17 points, three rebounds, three steals and a pair of assists in 22 minutes, while Mia Lakstigala, Emily Anderson and Phoebe Sterba joined the rookie in double figures. Lakstigala's 15 points came in just 13 minutes, going 5-for-7 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
In total, the Red and Blue drilled 13 three pointers, improving to 32-0 under Mike McLaughlin when making at least 10 from deep.
PENN NEWS AND NOTES
*Penn continued its best start in program history, moving to 10-1 for the first time.
*The Quakers' 10 non-league wins are the third-most in a season in program history.
*Coach Mike McLaughlin won his 596th career game, just four away from becoming the 19th active D-I head coach to win 600 games.
*Penn is now 32-0 under McLaughlin when making at least 10 threes in a game; the Quakers hit 13 on Thursday
*The Quakers outscored Chaminade 26-0 in fast-break situations, improving to 9-0 when winning that category.
*The Red and Blue's 51-point win is the first by at least 50 since beating Gwynedd Mercy 89-25 on Jan. 28, 2018.
*For the third straight game, four Quakers finished with at least 10 points.
*Penn is 28-0 when allowing fewer than 40 points in a game.
*Conversely, the Quakers are now 20-1 when hitting at least 80 points in a game.
*Mia Lakstigala hit at least 15 points for the second time this season.
*Katie Kinum hit a pair of threes and finished with eight points, a season high. Sereen Weledji and Mandy McGurk also logged season highs. In total, 14 Quakers scored.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Penn fell behind 6-2 before erupting on a 14-1 run to take control of the contest. Phoebe Sterba ignited the spurt with a three and then another jumper after Eleah Parker converted a layup. Kayla Padilla scored a pair of baskets and Katie Kinum drilled a three off the bench amidst the burst as well. At 16-10, the Quakers closed the opening period with eight more unanswered points, including a pair of layups from Emily Anderson and Kinum's second long ball of the quarter.
Sterba opening the second stanza with another shot from beyond the arc to make it 27-10 before Anderson went to work again on the block. With a 28-12 lead, the senior center scored on consecutive possessions to open an 18-point advantage midway through the second period. Once again, the Red and Blue finished the quarter in a flurry, scoring the final 13 points of the half. Padilla hit all of her three first-half threes during that stretch, Parker scored twice and Michae Jones hit a long-distance bomb to beat the buzzer to close the half with a 49-20 lead.
Six different Quakers scored in the third quarter, including Meg Hair's first points of the game and seven from Mia Lakstigala in the final 2:56 of the period, stretching out to a 66-32 advantage. In the fourth, Penn outscored the Silverswords 24-7, buoyed by four more threes. Lakstigala canned two more, Jones hit another and Mandy McGurk scored five points down the stretch to clinch the 90-39 win.
UP NEXT?
A massive Ivy League opener against Princeton at The Palestra looms Saturday, Jan. 11 for the Quakers.
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